Acknowledgments

“Reforming Child Welfare through a Three-Branch Approach: A Toolkit for Success” was written by Rosalynd Mosser of NGA Solutions: The Center for Best Practices (NGA Solutions) and Nina Williams-Mbengue of NCSL. The authors would like to thank NGA staff members Michael Britsch and Alexandra Cawthorne Gaines, NCSL staff member Wade Fickler, and Casey Family Programs staff members Anthony Williams and Susan Robison for their invaluable contributions to the development of the toolkit.

Most importantly, the authors would like to thank the following state leaders, who shared insights from their experience in launching three-branch initiatives and recommendations for other states that ultimately informed the development of this toolkit:

  • • Bethany Anderson, legislative aide to Wisconsin State Representative Joan Ballweg.
  • • Carl Ayers, director of Family Services, Virginia Department of Social Services.
  • • Freida Baker, former deputy director, Alabama Department of Human Resources – Family Services.
  • • Bridget Bauman, policy analyst, Wisconsin Supreme Court.
  • • Rachel Bingham, executive officer, Department of Family & Juvenile Services, Administrative Office of the Courts, Kentucky Court of Justice.
  • • Fredi-Ellen Bove, administrator, Division of Safety and Permanence, Wisconsin Department of Children and Families.
  • • Elizabeth Caywood, deputy commissioner, Department for Community Based Services, Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services.
  • • Angela Donley, chief of staff to Oregon State Senator Sara Gelser.
  • • Oregon State Senator Sara Gelser.
  • • Judge Amy Holmes Hehn, Multnomah County Circuit Court (Oregon).
  • • John James, former deputy commissioner, Children and Family Services, Alabama Department of Human Resources.
  • • Rebecca Jones Gaston, executive director, Social Services Administration, Maryland Department of Human Services.
  • • Elizabeth Overall Lee, project manager, Virginia Department of Social Services.
  • • Michael Lore, chief of staff to Maryland State Senator Susan Lee.
  • • Leola McKenzie, director of Juvenile & Family Court Programs, Oregon Judicial Branch.
  • • Rena Mohamed, director, Outcomes Improvement, Maryland Department of Human Services.
  • • Nancy Sullivan, assistant to the cabinet secretary, West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources.
  • • Deborah Taylor Tate, director, Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts.
  • • Nikki Tennis,

NCSL and NGA Solutions would also like to acknowledge Casey Family Programs for its generous support of the Three Branch Institute and the development and publication of this toolkit.

Suggested citation

Mosser, R. & Williams-Mbengue, N. (2019). Reforming child welfare through a three-branch approach: A toolkit for success. Washington, DC: National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and National Conference of State Legislatures.